Moments
by surrendersomething
Summary: (3 of 3) John&Claire. Vignettes depicting moments in the lives of our favourite detective sergeants.
1. Tonight

**Title: **Tonight (1/3 of the "Moments" series)

**Author: **Sarah (aka surrendersomething)

**Rating: **PG

**Summary: **(1/3) John&Claire. Vignettes depicting moments in the lives of our favourite detective sergeants.

**Characters: **Claire Stanton, John Boulton

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing to do with The Bill, its characters or storylines. The plot of this story however, is all mine. Song lyrics in bold italics taken from "I'll Be Your Baby Tonight", and the version I was listening to was by Norah Jones.

**Authors Notes: **This three-part story is my first venture into the world of The Bill fiction. Have been a fan for years but this is the first time I've attempted writing John and Claire, let alone any TB characters. So you'll have to forgive me - my mindset might still be in the other fandoms I write for! This is set after they got together, but waaay before he was killed (don't get me started) and I'm pretty much for the purposes of this story ignoring the fact that Claire was working for CIB and that Don was corrupt. Makes the life of an A Level student far easier. Enjoy, and any feedback would be much appreciated.

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**Tonight**

_**Close your eyes, close the door**_

_**You don't have to worry any more**_

**_Cause I'll be your baby tonight._**

****

_**Shut the lights and shut the shade**_

_**You don't have to be afraid**_

**_Cause I'll be your baby tonight._**

****

****

****

_Sinking further into the ridiculously comfortable cushions, she allowed her denim-clad legs to dangle lazily off the side of the sofa as she flicked absently through his absurdly large collection of television channels, before settling on a fairly non-descript film. Turning the volume down to a comfortable level, she ran a hand absently through her hair before stretching out an arm to retrieve her glass of wine. _

Entering the house at some early hour of the morning, this was how John found her some hours later when his obbo was finally drawn to a close. Finding the ground floor pretty much bathed in darkness, he followed the soft drone and flickering lights of the television to find her sprawled across the sofa, legs dangling off one end, wine glass balanced precariously between her fingers and the remote control wedged between her body and the back of the sofa. Her hair fell across her face in messy strands as her chest rose and fell evenly, and the combination of those factors made her utterly endearing to him right at that moment.

Crouching down next to the sofa, he removed the wine glass from her hand and gently extracted the remote control from its position, muting the volume before discarding it somewhere behind him. Momentarily he contemplated not waking her as she was clearly exhausted, however he knew all too well the discomfort after a night on that sofa and told himself that she'd sleep better in a bed.

Not that he'd ever admit it to her, but he slept better when she was next to him anyway.

Brushing her hair gently away from her cheek, he leant close to her ear, whispering her name before pressing a light kiss just below her ear. She stirred, mumbling something unintelligible before instinctively reaching out a hand for him. He smiled softly, catching her fingers in his and watching for a moment as she struggled to rouse herself.

"Claire…you need to wake up, baby," he whispered slightly louder this time, bringing his free hand up to brush the back of his fingers across her cheek, running his thumb gently along the delicate skin underneath her eye, as her eyelids fluttered open.

"…time isit?" she whispered hoarsely after a few seconds, blinking rapidly as her eyes adjusted to the relative brightness of the room.

"Just after two a.m.," he told her softly, pressing a finger to her lips. "I'm sorry, but I couldn't let you sleep here all night."

"That's sweet," she mumbled, sounding vaguely coherent before breaking her hold on his fingers in order to smother a yawn. Laughing softly, he rested his hands on her waist and helped her into a sitting position, smiling when she draped her arms across his shoulders. Pressing his lips to hers slowly as her fingers brushed across the hair at the nape of his neck, he slid his arms around her waist and drew her closer to him. "How did the obbo go?" she asked as they broke the kiss, resting her forehead against his.

"Pointless waste of time," he muttered, drawing a smile out of her with his typical response before continuing, "Especially when I could've been here," he added, letting her add on _'with you' _herself, before continuing, "but Deakin's satisfied, which has to count for something."

"So _that's_ why it took so long," she guessed, referring to the mere mention of their senior officer. "I wanted to wait up for you, feels like I haven't seen you properly for days," she complained good-naturedly, pressing her lips to his again.

"I'll take you out for dinner tomorrow night," he promised, tucking her hair behind her ears. "Then we'll come back here, and you'll have my undivided attention, I promise. But now, I think I need to sleep. And I know that you do." She laughed, willingly accepting his hands as he pulled her into a standing position.

"I'll hold you to that dinner thing," she warned, knowing that he wouldn't need holding to his other promise, before heading towards the stairs as he turned off the television. Laughing to himself, he realised that she would indeed hold him to his words, before following her up the stairs, wrapping his arms around her waist from behind as they reached the top. She laughed softly, tipping her head back against his shoulder to kiss him briefly before giving a gentle tug on his tie and making her way through to the bedroom.

When they crawled into bed some minutes later, they took up an almost automatic position which seemed to always involve Claire ending up half-sprawled across him, her head resting comfortably on his chest. Running his fingers absently through her hair, he reflected on the realisation that in the last few months he couldn't remember a morning when they'd woken up together with no part of their bodies touching – in fact generally, they would wake no more than mere centimetres apart.

He would have expected it to unnerve him, but instead he felt strangely relaxed.

Eventually brought back to earth by her mumbled "G'night", he responded with a similar sentiment before kissing her forehead gently as she slipped easily back into slumber.

His whispered "I love you" as her breathing deepened was a further sentiment he had every intention of communicating to her, when she was in a state less resembling exhaustion.

Because there were some things he had no problems with admitting to her.

****

**_Cause I'll be your baby tonight._**

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_**fin.**_


	2. Carry You Around

**Title:**Carry You Around(2/3 of the "Moments" series) 

**Author:** Sarah (aka surrendersomething)

**Rating: **PG

**Summary:** (2/3) John&Claire. Vignettes depicting moments in the lives of our favourite detective sergeants.

**Characters:** Claire Stanton, John Boulton

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing to do with The Bill, its characters or storylines. The plot of this story however, is all mine. Song lyrics in bold italics in this chaptertaken from "Feel Like Making Love" by Roberta Flack (first set of lyrics) and "Carry You Around" by Ani DiFranco (final set of lyrics).

**Authors Notes:** Thank you so much for all the lovely reviews! Tammy, TBFF Nat, Gem and Sammie - you guys really made me smile, I'm glad you're enjoying this! Here is the second chapter, and I promise I'm working on the third as we speak. As always, any feedback is much appreciated!

**Carry You Around**

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**_In a restaurant, holding hands by candlelight,_**

**_While you're touching me, wanting you with all my might._**

_**That's the time I feel like making love to you.**_

_**That's the time I feel like making dreams come true.**_

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****

_Tucking her freshly straightened hair loosely behind her ears, Claire leant towards the mirror in concentration, brandishing a tube of lip gloss in one hand. Shaking her head briefly at the unusual show of vanity, she applied a painstakingly perfect layer of gloss before returning the tube to its rightful place in her bag, slipping her feet into a pair of surprisingly comfortable heels before standing and giving herself a critical appraisal in the full-length mirror. Satisfied with what she saw, she turned to the door, allowing a smile to cross her face in anticipation of the evening ahead. _

_**

* * *

**_

"Would I be tempting fate if I said I was looking forward to tonight?"

His head snapped up at the sound of her voice, eyes glued to her figure as she made her way carefully down the stairs. The light green dress clung perfectly to her body, before floating down to end around her knees, complimented by matching shoes that looked to him slightly dangerous. Making a mental reminder not to get on the wrong side of her, he allowed his eyes to travel back up to her face, matching her smile with one of his own.

"_You_ look gorgeous," he commented softly, taking both her hands in his as she reached the bottom of the stairs. Pulling her close, he allowed his cheek to rest on her hair, breathing in the slightly heady mix of her fruity shampoo combined with the distinct fragrance he could only describe as _her_. "And forget about fate. Tonight is just you and me."

Taking a step back, she allowed her own gaze to travel along his body momentarily, before reaching out to grasp the lapels of his jacket, pulling him close again and pressing her lips to his.

"You don't look so bad yourself," she offered eventually, smiling slightly self-consciously. He laughed, brushing her hair from her face gently before letting his hand linger on her cheek. Lowering her eyes slightly before looking back at him, she kissed him once more. "You know you won't get out of taking me out that easily!"

"Wouldn't dream of it," he replied, moving away to grab her jacket, holding it out for her instinctively and receiving a kiss on the cheek for his troubles.

* * *

Lifting her glass to her lips, she smiled, tossing her hair gently out of her face as they both leant back in their seats slightly. Catching his eyes, she tugged her lower lip between her teeth coyly, reaching across the table to link her fingers with his.

"How did you hear about this place? The food is beyond words," she commented softly, gesturing with her free hand to the meal they'd just finished.

"Believe it or not, I heard Kerry talking about it a couple of weeks ago. Some… "Mark" had brought her here?" he said questioningly, receiving a nod from Claire at recognition of the name. "I meant to bring you sooner, but everything got a little crazy."

"Tell me about it," she agreed with a slight sigh. "Well, I'll tell Kerry that this Mark has impeccable taste," she added, a slight glint in her eyes. "I suppose I'd have to add that the company had something to do with it…course she'd never think for a million years it'd be you, so our secret's safe for now," she added cheekily, having no real intention of revealing their relationship to anyone else.

Apart from the fact that no one would believe her, she was almost enjoying the secrecy – it meant that the time they did spend together felt more special, in a way. Allowing herself to relive select memories of their relatively short relationship to date – the time they'd been caught in the rain together after a shift, an event which had eventually led to their first kiss; the first time he'd taken her out for dinner; the first time she'd woken up next to him – she was only brought back to the present by the gentle squeeze of his hand.

After she offered a slightly sheepish smile, he just raised an eyebrow at her, silently asking what had had her so deep in thought. She simply responded with a slight shrug, not wanting to be the one to break the comfortable silence that had settled over them.

Not that she'd needed to worry – it was in fact the curse he muttered under his breath that broke the silence.

"John?" she asked, realisation dawning moments later as he retrieved his phone from the inside pocket of his jacket. Shaking her head as if to brush off his apologetic glance, she gestured towards his phone, which he reluctantly flipped open to read the message. "Work?" she guessed, accurately reading the look of frustration on his face.

"Rod," he confirmed, pulling a face. "The DI wants everyone in immediately, apparently." Meeting his gaze for a couple of seconds, she reluctantly reached for her own phone, removing it from her bag, only to see the tell-tale message symbol as she flipped it open.

"Kerry" she told him, holding up the phone. Signalling to the waiter as he put his phone away, he smiled apologetically before reaching for her hand again.

"I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault," she replied immediately, leaning across the table to kiss him. "Just seems like we never get any time together when we're not exhausted, y'know?" He smiled, resting a hand on the back of her neck and kissing her once more, lingeringly, before sitting back in his seat.

"We will, I promise."

* * *

If the population of CID were at all surprised by the arrival of Claire Stanton in an evening dress and heels entirely unsuitable for work, the only visible signs of this were a few appreciative glances from the male members. However, they all found it incredibly hard to conceal their surprise at her arrival being followed directly by that of John Boulton attired in a suit also entirely too posh for work.

Multiple pairs of eyes followed the pair as they took the only remaining seats in the room, and as the DI began to talk, his team all began to put two and two together…and reach five. With the possible exception of Mickey therefore, none of them were surprised when the DI requested a word with his two sergeants at the end of his impromptu briefing.

Meeting the inquisitive eyes of Kerry Holmes as she stood up, Claire shook her head briefly, a gesture which clearly meant _"later"_. She received a muted wolf whistle from Rod and a mere raised eyebrow from Don as she crossed the room, all adding to the acute embarrassment she was feeling. Meanwhile, John received a slap on the back or look of congratulations from every man he passed, on account of them all putting two and two together and going way beyond five, to reach somewhere around ten.

"You…are dead," Claire muttered threateningly, leaning back slightly as he caught up with her just before the DI's office.

"You know you love me really," he replied, amused slightly by her flushed cheeks.

"Just be glad that I do."

_**And I know the fact of your presence will dominate my memory**_

_**of this restaurant, this table, this day and this town.**_

_**Because I carry you, baby…I carry you around.**_

_**fin.**_


	3. Everything

**Title:** Everything (3/3 of the "Moments" series) 

**Author:** Sarah (aka surrendersomething)

**Rating:** PG-13 (or whatever the hell it is now)

**Summary:** (3/3) John&Claire. Vignettes depicting moments in the lives of our favourite detective sergeants.

**Characters:** Claire Stanton, John Boulton

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing to do with The Bill, its characters or storylines. The plot of this story however, is all mine. Song lyrics in bold italics in this chapter are taken from "Everything" by Lifehouse. A song which rocks muchly - if you haven't heard it, go find it!

**Authors Notes:** Okay here's the last chapter. This one took slightly longer as I have issues with writing angst-free stories. However it is here, and I think that I somehow managed to stumble into a massive pile of fluff somewhere along the way. So be warned. Again, thank you to everyone who reviewed - Tammy, Meegan, Gem and Sammie, it's good to know that people are enjoying it. Sammie - duude I love our conversations, and I'd just like to say "shush!" Tammy - cheers honey, you're a star and you already know what I think of you.

Anyway, enjoy the last chapter - I've really enjoyed writing this story, and I'd love to know what everyone thought.

**Everything**

__

You calm the storms, and you give me rest.

_**You hold me in your hands, you won't let me fall.**_

_**You steal my heart and you take my breath away.**_

_**Would you take me in, would you take me deeper, now?**_

* * *

_Sliding a hand across his shoulder as they sat in the car, hidden by the cover of darkness, she kissed him softly, feeling him smile against her lips. Sliding her hands around to meet at the back of his neck and rubbing the tense muscles, she threw him a concerned look before pressing her lips to his again, gently. Minutes later, after her whispered 'let's get out of here,' he reluctantly moved his hands from her waist, flashing her a tired smile before starting the engine. _

* * *

"Give me your phone."

"I'm sorry?" Claire asked, reluctantly moving from her comfortable position, sprawled on top of him on the sofa, and fixing him with a confused look. Rolling his eyes, he clearly decided it wasn't worth waiting for an answer and instead reached a hand into the pocket of her jeans before flipping open her phone and switching it off. Showing her what he'd done, he placed it on the table next to his, ignoring her exclamations of protest as he showed her that his was also turned off.

"I promised you no interruptions," he explained, resting both hands on her waist again. "Now be quiet and come back here." Willingly shifting back into her original position, she allowed a lazy smile to cross her face before meeting his lips with hers.

"I've missed you," she murmured between kisses some minutes later, almost unwilling to tear her lips from his to continue. "I was beginning to think we'd…_never _get an evening to ourselves." Laughing at his almost frustrated groan in memory, she rested her forearms on his shoulders, giving herself a chance to catch her breath.

"Such little stamina," he teased good-naturedly, reaching around to push her arms away gently, bringing her crashing back down to his lips.

"I'll show you stamina," she muttered in response, fingers playing absently with the hair at the back of his neck as their lips met again. Feeling the lingering tension in his neck, she applied a little more pressure, more worried than satisfied at the slight groan that escaped his lips. "You told me you didn't feel as stressed this morning," she commented slightly accusingly, pressing her lips to the corner of his mouth.

"I'm fine…" he commented defensively, kissing her again, in response to which she expertly found another tense muscle. "Okay, you win. Maybe I am a little tense. It's just been a long week, that's all."

"Tell me about it. I've worked as many hours as you John, but it's not affected me like this. And I _know_ you've worked more hours than this before…" she whispered, resting her hands on the arm of the sofa either side of his head and pushing herself into a sitting position. "Sit up."

"Claire, I'm fine…"

"No you're not. Just stop being so stubborn for once and sit up!" After much muttering, he realised there was nothing to be done except to do as she said, and managed to raise himself into an upright position – only to be pushed forward a little as she wriggled her way behind him. "Jesus, you can be awkward when you want to," she muttered, letting her hands rest on his shoulders.

"Sod off," he replied good-naturedly, secretly enjoying the feel of her body pressed close to his. And when she began to move her hands gently, careful not to put too much pressure on the particularly tense muscles in his shoulders, he began to enjoy the whole experience even more. "What is this, your secret talent?"

"Mmm, something like that," she replied, her concentration evident as she moved her hands down to the top of his back. "Damnit John, why didn't you tell me that everything had got you this wound up?" she asked softly, the slightest hint of hurt entering her voice.

"You worked as much as I did, Claire. It just…didn't seem fair on you." Shaking his head slightly, he rested a hand on her leg gently as she leaned over his shoulder to kiss his cheek quickly.

"Next time, don't worry about me yeah? This works much better when you're not _quite_ this tense," she murmured, bringing her hands back up to his neck, somewhat satisfied to feel him relaxing slightly.

"Feels pretty good to me right now," he replied instantly, leaning into her hands slightly. "And is that a promise of a repeat performance?" he enquired, twisting slightly to look at her.

"Maaaybe," she admitted reluctantly, leaning forward to kiss him quickly. "Feel any better?"

"Loads. You're a miracle worker," he admitted reluctantly, stretching back out into his original position and reaching out to pull her down, smiling slightly as she settled back down on top of him, pressing her lips to his. "You'll have to teach me how to do that; I can return the favour…"

"I might just hold you to that," she whispered as she her arms back around his neck. He kissed her slowly before trailing a path of kisses down to her neck, smiling when she tilted her head slightly in response. Bringing his lips back to hers, his hands trailed a path along the skin just underneath the hem of her top, feeling her shiver slightly.

"Of course, _this_ is good for relaxing too…" he commented against her lips, laughing as she slapped the back of his head gently, before kissing him again.

"You…are insatiable," she murmured, a smile crossing her face as his hands moved to the buttons on her shirt, undoing them torturously slowly.

"Not that you're complaining."

* * *

Tracing a lazy pattern across his chest as she rested her head against his shoulder some indeterminable amount of time later, she allowed her thoughts to drift slightly, as they often did when she was lying with him. They could lapse into a comfortable silence without it feeling awkward in the slightest, and that was something she really valued about their relationship – it gave her time to think. Remembering how hesitant she'd been to allow anything to happen between them at first, she realised that it was moments like this that made all the secrecy worthwhile.

Whilst coming clean about their relationship might mean that they would get to spend more time together, there was no way she'd give up the way their relationship felt right at that moment. To let other people in on what had become their secret would cheapen it somewhat. Suspicion, she could deal with. And whilst she knew their CID colleagues had a fair amount of circumstantial evidence on which to base those suspicions – there was the whole dinner incident for one thing, and she was certain Kerry would be permanently scarred were she aware of some of the conversations she had unknowingly interrupted – but until they confirmed anything there was something…exciting almost, about it being just between the two of them.

She was brought out of her thoughts as he pulled the sheets up over them, in response to which she turned slightly and settled herself comfortably against him before glancing up at him questioningly.

"You were shivering," he said softly, his fingers sliding through her hair gently as she glanced down at her arm and noticed that there were indeed goosebumps, before looking back up at him and shrugging slightly, realising that there was no way she was about to tell him that it wasn't because she was cold, it was because of the lazy way his fingers were trailing up and down her spine.

Catching the almost cheeky glint in his eyes, she guessed he probably already knew, anyway. Bringing her hand up to cup his cheek, she tilted her head slightly and returned his smile with one of her own.

"God, I've missed this," she murmured, leaning up slightly to kiss him, lingering against his lips for a long moment. "Just…lying here, with you. I felt like the job was just going to keep getting in the way…"

"Hey, don't go getting all upset on me," he whispered, kissing her again quickly. "You wouldn't want me to go and ruin my reputation by showing I _do_ have a heart, would you?"

"Oh you've already shown me that," was her soft reply as he shifted their position so they were lying face to face. Moving closer to him, she buried her face into his neck, sliding her arms round his torso as his hands came to rest on her back.

"Well, I suppose I should just go ahead and tell you that I love you then, shouldn't I?" he asked softly, allowing a smile to cross his face as she pulled back from him, her gaze both slightly shocked and glittering slightly with what he'd later swear were unshed tears. Bringing his hand up to tuck her hair behind her ear, he whispered the three words again; contented simply by the smile she flashed him before their lips met.

When he first met Claire Stanton, he'd never imagined that she'd have this profound an effect on him – he'd brushed his feelings aside as a simple moment of weakness at first, but they'd refused to stay too far away, particularly as he worked with her more frequently. He had found himself with an absurd need to protect her at times, an unfamiliar emotion that had worried him at times, and one that had certainly led to numerous disagreements between them.

Her hand on his cheek brought him back to reality, and her whispered return of his just-spoken sentiment made him realise that they really had found a common ground somewhere between all their disagreements, their single-mindedness and their independence.

Neither would admit that it had been easy, but both would admit that it had been worth it.

_**

* * *

**_

_**Well how can I stand here with you,**_

_**And not be moved by you?**_

_**Would you tell me how could it be**_

_**Any better than this?**_

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_**fin.**_


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